Revealed: The most watched tv programmes of 2016

Ryan Tubridy pictured in the opening sequence of RTÉ The Late Late Toy Show 2016. Picture Andres PovedaMrs Brown's Boys Christmas specialAt the theatre: From left, Charlie Murphy as Elizabeth, Ruth Bradley as Frances and Sarah Greene as May in Rebellion

If you didn't already know it - 2016 was a year filled with sporting highs, shock elections and...Mrs Brown's Boys.

As usual, The Late Late Toy Show was the most watched programme of the year with a total of 1,571,600 viewers; with the rest of the top 10 rounding out with sports coverage of the Euros and GAA All-Ireland finals

Four-part drama series Rebellion, starring Charlie Murphy and Brian Gleeson, started off with a bang and the debut episode was the 12th most watched show on television, but ratings plummeted for the remaining three episodes.

The 1916 series started off strong with 713,000 viewers but dropped to 487,000 by the finale.

At the theatre: From left, Charlie Murphy as Elizabeth, Ruth Bradley as Frances and Sarah Greene as May in Rebellion

The state broadcaster's gamble on two Mrs Brown's Boys specials over Christmas paid off as both the Christmas Day special Mammy's Forest and New Year's Eve special Chez Mammy featured in the top 20, bringing in 706,000 and 680,3000 respectively.

Mrs Brown's Boys Live also featured in 15th place with 680,300 viewers.

And in a year filled with an upsurge gangland crime, INM's Special Correspondent Paul Williams' appearance on The Late Late Show was one of the most watched shows of the year with 678,800 viewers.

Mr Williams gave his unique insight into the criminal world, detailing what these Irish criminals are worth, where they’re stashing the cash and how they are controlling the Dublin crime scene from their sunny homes in southern Europe.

Mrs Brown's Boys Christmas special

In a huge year for sport, six of the 20 most watched programmes were UEFO Euro games with France's victory over the Republic of Ireland on June 26 coming in as the second most watched programme with 1.26 million people viewers.

After Ireland's historic rugby victory against New Zealand in Chicago, their clash at the Aviva in November brought in 683,000 viewers, making it the 14th most watched programme.

Dublin v Mayo's All Ireland football final, which resulted in a draw, rounded off the top five and brought in 927,800 viewers to RTE One.

Kilkenny v Tipperary's clash in the All Ireland hurling final came in eighth, with 785,000.

The RTE Nine O'Clock News, providing General Election coverage, came in at number 11 with 721,400 viewers.